Waterfall Encounter
by TCurry
Summary: Naruto finds Hinata at the waterfall but she runs off before he can find out who she is. What if he found her again that night? Based off episode 148 of the anime. Naru/Hina.
1. Blissfully Unaware

**Hey Guys**

**I'm reposting this since it's just sitting in my documents. Letters of Love chapter 2 will be posted tonight, maybe around eleven. It's more than 15,000 words, so it'll hopefully keep you satisfied until I post another chap. If you like this story, welcome back. I'll be posting the chapters as quickly as I can, but I'm pretty busy.  
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**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, if i did he would have noticed Hinata at the waterfall and they would have little Uzumaki babies :)**

"Uh...Gotta pee."

Naruto looked up to see Shino and Kiba still asleep. There was no sign of Hinata anywhere in the tent, she probably had to go to. He prayed that he wouldn't run into her outside while going to do his own business, that would be both embarrassing and awkward. He quietly slipped out of the tent and went deep into the forest, if Hinata were anywhere she wouldn't be here.

Naruto pulled down his pants and began to do his business. A few minutes and a couple of grunts later he was done and was about to head back when the sound of water deterred him. It sounded like a waterfall nearby, it wasn't too long until morning so he wouldn't lose too much sleep if he wanted to investigate.

The walk there was nothing short of interesting. On the way he heard distinct sounds, sounds that couldn't be coming from the waterfall. There were consecutive splashes, then nothing, then more splashes. They were light and airy in a sense, as if the owner was walking on the water, not treading in it. There had to be someone there, that piqued Naruto's interest even more.

A few minutes later he arrived at the waterfall. It was beautiful, the water cascaded of the cliff at just the right ark. The splash at the bottom coupled with the moonlight created a sort of lunar rainbow. The mist coming from the water crashing down was thick and was going everywhere, Naruto could even feel sprinkles hit his face from where he was standing.

A figure moving out in the middle of the lake caught his attention. It wasn't near any moonlight so it was cloaked in darkness. Although he couldn't see much, he could tell it was the figure of a woman, beautiful at that. She was dancing out on the water, her movements graceful and flawless. It also appeared that either she was wearing skin tight clothing or was naked. The sensible part of Naruto hoped she was clothed but the curious adolescent boy that was the other part was hoping for the latter.

As she moved the water moved with her. It didn't seem as though she was using jutsu though, the water followed her directions so naturally and there were no hand signs. It was perfect. That was the only word to describe it. Naruto was mesmerized by her beauty, even though he had yet to see her face. Her form was outlined by the little light that did hit her, which was enough for Naruto to make out her blue hair. The shadow of the trees kept her identity a secret from him, almost teasing him to come closer and see for himself.

With a final wave of her hand the water surrounded her in a flawless circular sphere. Bits of water went everywhere and sparkled around her. It was like nothing he had ever seen before. She stopped for a moment, as if to begin another dance, but during Naruto's trance he hadn't realized that he had moved ever so slightly so that his foot was resting on a slippery rock. With a loud yell he fell into the water face first.

"Ite! Hey sorry if I scared-huh?" The entire area was empty. It didn't even seem as if there was ever a human presence there. Naruto was discouraged, he really wanted to meet that girl. Not only for her beauty but she also seemed to draw him somewhat. Her presence was alluring enough that he had lost his focus and embarrassed himself.

There wasn't even a sound except the waterfall falling a little lighter.

_'Lighter?' _He thought

Naruto walked over to hear the water had indeed sounded lighter, as if some of it wasn't even hitting the lake. He looked at it hard for moment before he could make out the same silhouette of the woman he's seen moments ago. She was shaking slightly, probably because it was so cold outside. He still couldn't tell if she had any clothes on, the waterfall hid everything except her figure.

"Hi, I'm Naruto, are you okay?"

The only response he got was a shrill "eep!" after he announced his name.

"I could come in and-" this time the girl made the same sound except louder. Shino and Kiba had probably heard it back at the campsite. She moved back further in the waterfall until she was behind it. The sound of roaring water became louder, most of the water was now hitting the lake.

"Well you don't sound that well, if you come out-" Naruto was interrupted by a hand coming out of the waterfall. It was smooth and delicate, he wanted to feel it but that would be taking it too far. It raised one finger and made a shaking motion which meant 'no'. Then it made a shooing motion, but Naruto wasn't leaving. If this girl needed help then he wouldn't leave her.

"I can't leave if I don't know what's wrong with you. Could you at least say something?" The finger made the same shaking motion, telling him no.

"Well I need to know, I'm not going to just leave you, let me see what's wrong."

Naruto's face was level with the hand as if he was talking to it. He looked at it for a moments as it made frantic shaking motions with the finger. That wouldn't do, if she was hurt he would help. Naruto took a breath, closed his eyes, and stuck his head in as far as it would go. When he felt the water finally lift he opened his eyes to come face to face with...a nipple? He looked up into Hinata's mortified face. She released a shriek so loud it was bound to have Kiba and Shino running to her at any moment. Sure enough the next thing Naruto heard was...

"Hinata! Where are you? Are you okay?" Kiba yelled

Naruto hurriedly pulled his head out, anxious to get away. Kiba's voice was getting nearer though, if he was discovered in front of the waterfall with a naked Hinata inside then it would be trouble. Shino and Kiba, mostly Kiba, were very protective of their female teammate. As far as Naruto knew they had helped her out every time whenever she had fainted, most were around him. There was also their sensei...

_'If they tell Kurenai-sensei she'll think I'm a pervert and then she'll tell Baa-chan!'_

Naruto was near tears. The beating that would come from Tsunade-baa-chan would be bad for sure, but any additional beatings by Sakura, who was bound to find out, and Kurenai-sensei, whose specialty was genjutsu, which he had no talent for releasing, would probably kill him. That was if there was anything left after Kiba and Shino got to him. Naruto was interrupted by Hinata's hand grabbing his jacket and yanking him inside. His back was to her so he couldn't see anything.

"H-Hinata, I d-didn't mean t-to interrupt y-you while y-you were b-bathing. G-Gomen." His stutter was almost as bad as hers.

"N-N-Naruto-kun, I-It's m-my f-fault f-for b-being s-so l-loud."

"No it isn't," Naruto said regaining his confidence, despite the fact a naked girl was behind him. "I came into the waterfall because I was being stupid. Don't blame yourself. Now Kiba will probably find us and kick my ass, if he can. Then Baa-chan and Kurenai-sensei will probably beat me. If Sakura-" Hinata stopped him by kicking the back of his heel with hers.

"K-Kiba-kun and S-Shino-kun w-won't f-find u-us i-if w-we stay in the w-waterfall. K-Kiba-kun c-can't s-smell us and S-Shino-kun's bugs d-don't l-like w-water t-that m-much."

Naruto sighed, he might just get off the hook with this. If they just kept quiet then he would live. Oh Kami he hoped Hinata didn't squeal again, that would definitely give him away. She had only done that because he had peeked at her, unintentionally of course.

"She's not here Shino, Maybe she's with Naruto?"

"It is a possibility seeing they both are missing."

"Then what was that high pitched noise? It had to be Hinata but I've never heard her scream like that before."

"She's with Naruto. We should go back to camp." with that Shino calmly walked back towards the tent.

"Hey! What do you mean she's with-" It took Kiba a few seconds to piece together what Shino had most likely meant, after which he exploded with anger.

"NARUTO! I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!

He stormed away with Akamaru on his heels, not even aware of what the dog was carrying.

Naruto shook from his place under the waterfall. Now he was certain that there would be trouble. He started to turn around to Hinata but remembered she was naked and stopped.

"I-I s-should g-get m-my c-clothes."

Naruto nodded knowing she wouldn't see it anyway. Hinata took off towards the rocks where her clothes should have been resting. It took all her willpower not to faint during this entire embarrassing episode. The only thing that overrode all her faint commands was the fact that Naruto-kun would have to carry her nude body back to camp, which she didn't mind much but she didn't want him to be burdened with it. Not to mention he probably thought she was disgusting for what she had been doing out on the lake in the middle of the night. It was training but he didn't know that, it also didn't have to be without clothes on but she felt more comfortable when she was free of her garments. She wore them all day and they never became any cooler.

When she finally arrived at the rocks her clothes were nowhere to be found. The only thing on the ground was her headband, everything else disappeared. She had put them all in one neatly arranged stack, even the underwear were missing! She shuddered as she headed back over to the waterfall, it was getting cooler outside and she would probably develop a fever if she didn't put something on.

"N-Naruto-kun m-my c-clothes d-disappeared."

"Nani!" He sighed. "Alright you can borrow my jacket and my pants until we get back as thanks for not ratting on me Hinata. I'm sorry for spying on you," he spoke while removing his jacket. "What were you doing out here anyway?"

"T-Training."

"Training? Wow you're really committed Hinata."

"T-Thank y-you N-Naruto-kun."

Naruto held out his clothes to her but she didn't take them. Instead her hands slowly inched beside his head and tied something around his eyes. It was her headband, she probably didn't want to risk him getting another peek.

"G-Gomen N-Naruto-kun, I-I j-just-"

"I understand Hinata." he said with a smile as he turned around unable to see anything. She still felt incredibly embarrassed since he was facing her even though he couldn't see anything.

Hinata took the clothes and put them on. It took her a little longer due to her staring at Naruto's chiseled chest which she could see the outline of through his wet shirt. Her eyes didn't dare go any lower, that would be invading his privacy even though he didn't know it. The thought did repeatedly cross her mind though.

"Ready Hinata?"

Hinata nodded her head but then remembered he couldn't see with the headband still on. She removed it and nodded her head. They started walking back to the campsite slowly, Naruto was in no hurry to face Kiba and Shino. Hinata actually enjoyed most of the walk due to her being bundled up in Naruto's jacket.

"G-Gomen Naruto-kun. I-I k-know y-you d-didn't want to s-see-"

"Don't worry about it Hinata, I don't mind." He smiled wide, Hinata blushed "It was amazing what you were doing, the way the water moved, the dance, it really was beautiful" Hinata's blush intensified

"A-Arigatou Naruto-kun."

They made it back to the campsite moments later. Hinata opened the tent flap and almost gasped loudly enough to wake Kiba, who was snoring loudly in Naruto's bag. Akamaru was in Kiba's bag chewing on her clothes in his sleep. Shino was, well she didn't know what he was doing. He always slept with his glasses on so when she opened the tent flap and saw him staring at her she didn't know if he was awake. It startled her.

_'Now I have to buy a new pair of clothes, and undergarments.' _

Naruto walked in and tossed Hinata her bag. She returned five minutes later dressed in her normal clothes. Kiba hadn't moved from Naruto's sleeping bag so he would probably have to sleep on the floor without one tonight. That wasn't a problem, if Kiba woke up and he was sleeping next to him there would be questions and beatings, the latter coming first.

He curled up on the floor and made his best effort to fall asleep. After ten minutes of not even beginning to feel sleepy he sat up and looked at Hinata, who seemed to be staring at him. She shyly motioned for him to come over, he looked at her strangely but understood.

"N-Naruto-kun i-if you're uncomfortable w-we c-could s-share."

Naruto looked at her incredulously. He has just seen her partially naked a few moments ago and she was willing to share a sleeping bag with him? Hinata wasn't your average kunoichi, the average kunoichi would have kicked his ass and told him to sleep outside. He wanted to talk to her more often, to know who Hinata Hyuuga was. She was a little strange but she was strong too.

"Arigatou Hinata."

Thats how they slept that night. Back to back because neither wanted to make the other uncomfortable. Hinata was red the entire time,and for some strange reason, Naruto was too.

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**Remember, Letters of Love chapter two tonight. It's titled: Photos.**

**Review/Critique  
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	2. The Morning After

**Still Re-upping**

**Onto the Story!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any part of Naruto, if i did he would be with Hinata in almost every episode. :)**

Naruto felt a body adjacent to his. For some reason there was a warm body in front of him. He couldn't remember where he slept last night. Who would be lying in front of him? He ran through the various scenarios in his head

Kiba? No if Kiba was laying in front of him he would smell dog. Naruto had nothing against him, but he smelled like dog most of the time. Sometimes he suspected he bathed with Akamaru.

Akamaru? If Akamaru was next to him he wouldn't be so big.

Shino? Ughhh. Naruto shuddered at that thought. The day he would wake up to Shino's emotionless eyes was probably the day he'd run away from Konoha and never come back.

Hinata? Something inside his head clicked. What had he done that involved Hinata last night? There was something he had seen her do. What was it? The only word that tumbled around in his head when he thought of her was 'beautiful'.

He slowly opened his eyes to confirm it was indeed Hinata. She lay curled up in a cute little ball against his chest, and for some reason his arm was around her waist, almost in a comforting gesture. He looked down at her and remembered why he thought of the word 'beautiful' when she came to mind. It was because she was exactly that. He had never really taken the time to look at Hinata as anything other than a comrade, but after what had happened at the waterfall last night...

"That's what it was!" he whispered loudly.

This caused Kiba to shift angrily in his covers, Akamaru to yip softly, Shino to, well stay the same, and Hinata to put her left arm around his neck. He has to stifle a gasp when he felt her gently tug his hair and then run her fingers through it.

"Mmmm Naruto-kun," she whispered

Naruto held his breath until she became silent again. She was dreaming about him? He didn't know why but the fact that she had him on her mind made his chest swell something akin to happiness. He had never pursued any women in the village, other than Sakura who had repeatedly rejected him, so it was nice to be dreamed about by a girl. An innocent girl who didn't throw extremely strong punches. Naruto was brought out of his thoughts by a hand grabbing onto a not so public place on his body.

"Mmmm Naruto-kun. So big."

He froze. Hinata wasn't the type to do this. She wasn't a girl that went around grabbing...those things...out of nowhere. Maybe other provocative women, but certainly not Hinata. He grunted as Hinata squeezed harder. It was becoming increasingly difficult to stay quiet. Her hand kept moving slightly, almost in teasing motions. He had to resist the urge to growl.

"Naruto, what are you doing in Hinata's sleeping bag?"

_'Damn you Kami!' _

"Uh, you kinda slept in ...rrr-" Hinata squeezed again.

"What was that?" Kiba asked.

"You were...ah...in mine and she...ugh...said I could...ooh...sleep with her."

"Okay...well we have to go leave to find that bug soon so get up."

The blonde looked over her shoulder at the Imuzuka. "Can't right now. I'm uh...stuck."

"Stuck?" Kiba took time to process this "You bastard! You better not have-"

"No! The bag is just a little...ugh...small. I'll be able to get out when she wakes up."

"How about I help?" Kiba said rising.

"NO! I mean, I'll do it by myself. You'll just get in the way"

The Inuzuka took a step forward. "Get in the way? I don't give a damn if I have to gatsuuga that bag to pieces. You're coming out of it."

Kiba started walking over to the bag, which wasn't very far considering they were all sharing a tent. He was so busy trying not to wake Shino that he accidentally stepped on Akamaru's paw and made him emit a loud yelp. Fortunately this yelp was enough to deter him and wake Hinata at the same time.

The heiress sleepily opened her eyes. "N-Naruto-kun? W-Why a-are w-we s-so c-close, a-and w-why am I h-holding a f-flashlight?"

Naruto averted his eyes. "That's uh...not a flashlight Hinata."

Hinata looked down and saw he was right, this was no flashlight. She also moved her other hand and found it at the back of his head. Her hand moved again, making sure it was actually _her_ hand that was on his pants. She looked up at him, redder than he had ever seen her before, and fainted on the spot. Her head hit the ground with a loud 'thump' and she was out.

_'DAMN YOU KAMI!' _Naruto shouted for the second time in his head.

Kiba had apologized to Akamaru and was making his way over to Naruto. This was going to be hell. Not only was he in Hinata's sleeping bag, but she also still had a firm hold on him while her other hand had slipped onto his lower back. Kiba would definitely kill him for this, if not Kiba then the entire female kunoichi populous that managed to hear about it. He would be pegged as a pervert for life; well what remained of his life after everyone got wind of this.

"Kiba, I'm sure Naruto knows how to leave his sleeping bag. Why don't you go refill our canteens by that waterfall we saw yesterday?" Shino stated, surprising everyone.

Kiba groaned and went to pick up the canteens. During his trek to pick them up he glared at Shino not so subtlety. He left soon after, Akamaru trailing behind him. Shino got up moments later and was about to exit the tent when Naruto spoke up.

"Thanks Shino."

Shino turned to look at him; it sent chills down Naruto's spine. "Anything to see a team stays together Naruto. We are on a mission, so I would appreciate it if you and Hinata kept your time together to a minimum. Also, I need to talk to you about this later, but before I go..." Shino raised his hand and a bug flew out of Hinata's sleeping bag

"I will let you know that if you hurt Hinata in any way, I will make sure the next thing my insects attack will be you. I know we are comrades, but that doesn't change the fact I protect my teammates. You hurt her feelings, I break your bones. Clear?"

Naruto nodded his head. He couldn't do much else in his situation. If he had said Hinata and him weren't involved, Shino would have brought up the waterfall, which was as incriminating as the position he was in now. The Aburame genin left the tent afterward, zipping it as far down as he could from the outside.

"Hinata! Wake up!"

She didn't move. Naruto nudged her but she still didn't budge. It took another two minutes of prodding until she finally roused from her sleep.

"N-Naruto-kun? W-Why are w-we s-so c-close a-and w-why a-am I h-holding-"

Naruto silenced her with a finger to her lips. She blushed heavily. "Hinata, please do me a favor and let go of the flashlight."

She complied and released her grip. Naruto sighed heavily. It was good to get some blood pumping down there again. Her death grip had cut off all his circulation.

"Now put your hands back on your sides," he directed her.

She looked at him curiously but moved her hands. The first she noticed was at his back. The other was well, down where other Naruto resided. She 'eeped' when she realized where her right hand had been resting. Her head fell slowly on another collision course with the ground but a hand stopped it by resting on her cheek.

"Hinata! I need you to stay with me."

She shook her head and tried to wake up. The fact that she had been holding him...down there...was enough to make her stay out for an entire day. She would never be able to look at him again without feeling some level of embarrassment. Had she been the one to grab him, or had he put her hand there? No, Naruto-kun wasn't the type to do that and he probably wouldn't have told her to let go if he was. She had been dreaming of him, a dream she would never tell anyone, so she had probably grabbed him in her sleep.

"G-Gomen N-N-Naruto-kun, I-I-I d-d-didn't k-k-know."

The blonde sighed. "It's alright Hinata. I-I guess were even now after what happened last night."

They both looked at each other and flushed red.

Hinata looked around. They were the only people in the tent. "W-We s-should g-get u-p before S-Shino-kun and K-Kiba-kun get back."

They struggled at first but were eventually successful in removing themselves from the bag. Naruto stood up somewhat awkwardly but managed to get on his feet. Hinata did the same. They were facing each other, until Hinata fainted again. He looked down and remembered it was morning, thus he was standing at attention. It didn't help any that Hinata had squeezed him earlier.

This is how Kiba and Shino found him when they walked in only seconds later, Naruto standing only inches away from a fainted Hinata, pants outstretched. He looked over with shocked eyes while Kiba did the same to him. Shino was impassive behind his glasses but the tension in the air noticeably deepened when he looked at Naruto.

"Uh, good morning?"

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**Yes i know, not what you were hoping for but as i said before, filler! **

**Anyway the next chapter will be on the return to konoha and more Hina/Naru fluff because I like it that way. Up in about a week.**

**REVIEW! CRITIQUE!**


	3. Friendly Spar

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any part of Naruto. If i did Hinata and Naruto would have been on the same team...with Gai as sensei :)**

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**Naruto, Hinata, Kiba, and Shino walked into the Hokage's office to give their mission report. They'd failed the mission because Naruto had dropped Sasuke's headband when they finally had the bikouchu beetle, so it had not been able to capture his scent. Instead it had received a large blast of Naruto's own odor, courtesy of his ass.

That in itself wasn't the worst part. After Naruto had been spotted laying next to a passed out Hinata with a tent in his pants, Shino had to hold Kiba back with his insects while he was hardly restraining himself. Kiba was carried outside the tent which gave Naruto enough time to make himself decent. When they returned Kiba had a content look on his face while Shino remained impassive.

The failure of the mission only served to further infuriate the two. Naruto had felt terrible the day it happened, Hinata had tried her hardest. He had said he would protect her, but she had protected _him_. There was no ulterior motive, no 'I had to save you', she simply saved him out of kindness. She hadn't even rubbed it in his face after!

As much as he wanted to talk to her on the way back, it was simply impossible. Her teammates had either forbidden it or had stuck close enough so that there was no room to walk next to her. Their glares were enough to tell Naruto if he was to try to get close there would be dire consequences. When they had reached a five mile radius from the village the two bodyguards (Kiba and Shino) had insisted Hinata go ahead and they would watch the back.

Hinata listened obediently and took up the front watch. She had reached the village not five minutes later, but neither Kiba, Shino, nor Naruto were in sight. She waited a full ten minutes, worry had settled over her gradually. Just when she had taken a step outside the village gates Hinata caught sight of Kiba dragging something with Shino walking next to him.

It turned out what Kiba was dragging was a very worn out looking Naruto. He had small cuts and scrapes covering his body, along with several insect bites and scratches that looked to be caused by claws. Hinata rushed over to him and checked his condition, it looked like nothing serious but she was sure whatever happened to him wasn't painless.

When she had asked Shino he had said Naruto was adamant about getting some training in and they were forced to stop. He had attacked them, forcing them to fight back in some wild attempt at training. They had been forced to subdue him by using whatever methods were necessary.

That's how they looked when they strolled into the Hokage office, Naruto looking a mess and the others with hardly a scratch.

"Naruto what happened? Did you get attacked on the way back to the village?" Tsunade asked

Naruto looked from left to right, the other two male ninja gave him a look that clearly meant he would receive another beating lest he keep quiet about the first one.

"No I just fell in some thorny bushes Baa-chan. I'll be fine if I rest in the hospital a bit."

Tsunade raised a brow. "Thorny bushes? Whatever brat, go drag yourself to the usual room. I'll make sure a nurse goes to give you a check up."

Naruto obeyed and left the office. Kurenai's team gave their mission report and also left.

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Naruto laid in the hospital bed while a nurse checked his condition. It didn't really hurt that much anymore, the fox had probably healed the majority of his injuries. The nurse checked his vital signs, dabbed some alcohol on his wounds, then started writing on a clipboard. Her face was in a frown the entire time, probably because she didn't like helping him. It wouldn't surprise him if she hated him too for what happened in Konoha twelve years ago.

"Honestly, I didn't believe it myself" the nurse said

"Did you say something miss?"

The nurse looked at Naruto, he was startled to see a smile instead of a frown. Her eyes weren't cold like the others either, they were warm, comforting. She had black hair down to about waist level and caring gray eyes. She looked to be taller than him and probably weighed around the average for her age.

"I was just checking how many times you've been here in the last month and its quite a few. The other employees here told me that you visit on a daily basis when you're not on a mission but I found it hard to believe. You're medical record says otherwise though. How do you manage to bang yourself up so frequently?"

"Training." Naruto answered.

"What are you training that hard for? You have years ahead of you to train, shouldn't you take a break sometime?"

"No I...have to bring someone back to the village, and he's stronger than me now. The only way to drag his sorry ass back here is to defeat him. The bastard won't listen to reason."

The nurse had a general idea of who Naruto wanted to bring back. The only person who she could think of was Sasuke Uchiha, who had left the village not too long ago. He had been on the same team as Naruto if she recalled. The only way she knew of that was because of the enormous disappointment inside the village when they heard the last Uchiha had been teamed up with the 'demon'. They must have a had a strong bond for Naruto to train himself as hard as he did just to bring him back.

"I understand, but maybe you should take a break sometime. I'm sure being dead won't help you get him back her any faster."

"Thanks for caring nee-san, what was your name?"

"Ayane, nice to meet you too Naruto."

Naruto smiled widely. It made Ayane smile back. There was a knock at the door that interrupted their wordless conversation. Naruto was surprised to see Hinata walk in shyly carrying about a dozen flowers of some sort. She walked awkwardly towards his bed and dropped the flowers on the desk beside it.

"O-Ohayo N-Naruto-kun. How are y-you feeling?"

"I'm feeling great Hinata! Just a few more hours and I'll be out of here!"

"T-That's g-good to hear."

"Hai." Naruto glanced at the older woman. "Ayane-nee-san why are you smiling?"

She waved a hand in front of her face. "No reason Naruto. I have to go check up on other patients but I'll come see you before I leave to make sure you're okay."

"Arigatou nee-san."

Ayane picked up her clipboard and turned towards the door. She walked out with a knowing smile, stopping at the door to wink at Hinata. Hinata turned red. Ayane walked down the hallway to tend to the other patients in the hospital. She had other duties to take care of after all.

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"Thanks for coming to see me Hinata. I would've been bored if I was here alone."

"Y-You're welcome N-Naruto-kun. W-Why d-did Kiba-kun and S-Shino-kun hurt y-you e-earlier?"

Naruto expected her to piece it together. As far as he knew Hinata wasn't stupid. She had probably known from when they were in the Hokage office but didn't want to embarrass herself or get her teammates into any trouble.

"It was when they found us in the tent and you passed out. They probably thought I was going to do something to you."

Hinata flushed at the memory. The last thing she had seen before passing out was Naruto's pants standing out, pointing directly at her. She was sure he was embarrassed enough as it was, but she had made it worse by fainting again. He hadn't even tried to tell Kiba or Shino otherwise. Did he care for her enough that he didn't want her to carry any of the blame for that incident? She was sure it was her fault for grabbing him, which made him stand out like that.

Did that mean he liked her?

"G-Gomen Naruto-kun. I should have stopped them but I d-didn't think I w-would b-be s-strong enough t-to."

"Don't worry about it Hinata, and you're plenty strong. I'm sure you could kick Kiba's ass no problem." The blonde glanced out the window. "How about you come out and train with me today? Usually I go alone but it'd be nice if I could have a training partner."

The heiress sucked in a breath. "Y-You w-wouldn't mind?"

He grinned. "I figure it's the least I can do to try to make up for what happened on the mission. I was sure you'd slap me or yell at me after it happened. I'm happy that you're the way you are Hinata. I want you to train with me. We can both get stronger together."

_'He likes me because I'm me? He doesn't think I'm weak?'_

Hinata pressed her index fingers together. "A-Arigatou N-Naruto-kun. I'd l-like that."

"Yatta! Hinata you're really something. Meet me at training ground seven in about an hour. I have to go home to change my clothes."

Naruto stood up somewhat shakily and jumped out the window, nearly missing the first roof. Hinata stood in the hospital room, still unsure of what to do. She could just stand here for the next forty five minutes and then head to the training ground. A thought occurred to her.

_'I have no life'_

She could also take after Naruto and just meet him at his apartment. It wouldn't be 'stalking' as some would put it; she was just testing her stealth skills. She followed him at a slow pace, mainly because he wasn't moving very fast due to his injuries. There were a couple of times when he looked back and Hinata had thought she was caught, but he just kept going after.

It took awhile but eventually he made it to his apartment. If she'd gone to the training ground when he had said he would've been late. She waited outside his apartment, wondering what to say when he opened the door. How would she explain the reason why she followed him home?

"Hinata, what are you doing here?"

She spun around to see Naruto standing in the doorway with his ninja clothes on, shower water running in the background. He was looking at her with a surprised expression, probably wondering why she was just sitting in front of his apartment. Her eyes widened momentarily, then they rolled back and she fainted.

"Hinata! Hey! Wake up!"

It was in vain. She laid on the ground, completely passed out. It was unlikely she would come to anytime soon. Hinata had come to his apartment for reasons unknown to him. Maybe because he was a little late to get to the training ground? He still hadn't showered but Naruto couldn't just leave her laying in front of his doorway. He toed the girl but she didn't stir. The blonde sighed and picked her up to bring her inside.

Naruto set her down on the bed and went into the bathroom. Hopefully she wouldn't wake up until he finished bathing and put his clothes back on. He didn't want to have any more awkward situations around her. He'd was lucky to get out of the first two unscathed by female hands. Kiba and Shino had given him a pretty good beating, but Hinata had remained calm about the entire situation. He walked into the bathroom and climbed into the shower, still thinking about her.

Hinata awoke seconds later to the smell of ramen. She opened her eyes and looked around. It seemed like an average looking apartment; a little messy but otherwise not a complete disaster. There were a couple of empty instant ramen cups on the ground. The bed she was laying in was neatly made but could hardly be thought of as comfortable. The mattress was a little lumpy and had a small concave in it. She looked around and noticed several orange jumpsuits in the closet. Now she knew where she was.

The pitter-patter of water gained the heiress' attention. That would explain why Naruto wasn't anywhere in the room. He was taking a shower not twenty feet away from her. She waited patiently for him to return. The water running became almost hypnotic. Thoughts of puppies and kittens, innocent thoughts she used to prevent her mind from venturing into more perverted territory, were soon cast away in favor of the boy showering nearby. Curiosity was getting the best of her.

It'd be only fair. He'd seen her naked, right?

_'Go ahead, he won't even know.' _

He conscience egged her on. It didn't help any that Naruto took the longest showers. The sound of the water still running pressed her to go look, pressing her to hurry before she ran out of time. The heiress slowly got up, looking both ways in a strange attempt to make sure no one was watching her. Hinata made her way to the bathroom door. She creaked open the door and looked inside; there was steam everywhere. Fighting her own mind, Hinata decided she'd invaded his privacy enough. Even though his infatuation lied elsewhere and she would likely never get another chance, she still managed to pull her eyes away.

She tried to pull out only to have her jacket catch on a stray nail near the door frame. She gave another unsuccessful attempt to pull but the jacket wouldn't give. It wouldn't even rip! Hinata tugged harder but still had no positive results. Her heartbeat skyrocketed; the shower water had stopped. She was about to get caught peeping. One of Naruto's legs exiting the shower pushed the heiress to give one last, fruitless attempt to free herself. Finally, after another mighty tug, the jacket's fabric had enough and tore loudly. She closed the door quietly, leaving a piece of clothing hanging on the nail by it.

Naruto walked out moments later, completely oblivious to any watch he had been under. Hinata was sitting up on the bed, head down and fingers twiddling. He looked at her for a minute. For some reason she seemed...more attractive? There was something different about her...something she was missing something. The torn remains of some piece of clothing lay next to her. There was a large rip in one side of whatever it was.

The blond pointed at it. "Hinata, what's that next to you?"

Hinata's did a double take between him and the ripped remains. "I-It's my jacket N-Naruto-kun."

"What happened to it?"

"I r-ripped it on a nail that w-was sticking o-out of t-the wall."

Naruto glanced at the offending nail. He scratched the back of his head apologetically. "Gomen Hinata, I've been meaning to fix that. Well if it's any help I think you look loads better without it."

Hinata flushed red and made a mental note not to wear her jacket as frequently. "W-We should g-go train."

"Hai, let's get to the training ground."

They both departed via the window. It would only take a few minutes to arrive at the training ground. During the trip Naruto stole many glances at at the bluenette. Without that piece of clothing her entire look seemed to change. This did not go unnoticed by the heiress, who blushed at every occurrence and was happy for the little self-confidence boost. She would definitely wear that jacket less around him.

They arrived at the training ground moments later. The same logs were in place, giving Naruto a feeling of nostalgia. He ignored that for now. The reason he was here was so that he could become stronger, not to dwell on old memories.

He faced the girl. "Hinata, what do you think you need to work on?"

She gulped. "M-My taijutsu is pretty g-good, b-but I h-hardly k-know any n-ninjutsu. The only thing I know i-is my Shugo Hakke Rokujuu Yon Shou."

Naruto nodded his head "Hai, it was amazing when I saw it. Okay, I know few ninjutsu and my taijutsu is hardly meeting the average, as much as I hate to admit." He put a hand to his chin. "How about you help me with my taijutsu and I teach you a jutsu I know. We'll go from there."

A smile painted itself across her face. Since she was helping with his taijutsu, that affirmed future training sessions. "A-Alright. S-Should w-we spar first?"

"It would be good if we did. You can see where I am in taijutsu and we can test the strength of your Rokujuu technique."

Hinata nodded and took the opposing side of the field. Both shinobi took up their battle stances. Hinata took notice of Naruto's stance; it had several openings. Naruto charged at her and threw a sloppy punch with his right fist. Hinata easily dodged and planted a soft punch in his stomach. Naruto grunted and stood there for a moment. Hinata looked down at him, bewildered. He stood up stared at her for a moment and then sat down at her feet. He motioned for Hinata to join him.

"W-What's wrong N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata feared she had messed up. This was the only time she was sure he'd ask her to train with him.

He picked up her hand with his, causing her to blush. Naruto wondered why she did this at the strangest times. He marveled at the softness of it; she had to take perfect care of herself. The blond cast those thought aside and asked his question.

"Hinata what was that? I know your hand can do more damage. If we're sparring you have to come at me with everything you have, no holding back."

"B-But I-I c-can't hurt y-you Naruto-kun."

"Why not? I don't want to hurt you Hinata and I don't want you to get hurt either. That's why we train. We can make each other stronger so that we won't get hurt by others. Didn't you tell Shino and Kiba not to hold back when you were training?"

"H-Hai."

"So don't hold back on me! Do you want me to get hurt?"

Hinata's shocked face almost made him feel bad for asking. "N-No!"

"So hurt me!"

"W-What?"

Naruto rubbed his temples. He was beginning to confuse himself. "Hinata, come at me with everything you have, otherwise I wont become strong. If I'm not strong when I go to find Sasuke who do you think will get hurt? I need you Hinata. Please help me."

_'He needs me?'_

Hinata's determined face caused a grin to rise on his face. They both retook their fighting stances and Naruto charged once again. Hinata could tell he was doing the same thing, willingly leaving himself open. She wouldn't disappoint him this time. Hinata easily dodged his fist, this time she put in considerable force and plunged it into his stomach. Naruto coughed and spluttered. Hinata looked down at him worriedly. Naruto didn't turn down this opportunity, he swung his left fist and it impacted against her shoulder, sending her a good ways away.

"Guess I should have followed my own advice, eh Hinata?" he said with a smile.

Hinata stood up somewhat shakily but was on her feet again soon. She wore a smile similar to Naruto's "H-Hai, no h-holding back."

"Thats right. Here I come!"

Naruto charged once again, this time trying to sweep her feet out from under her. Hinata jumped, flipped, and tried for an ax kick but Naruto quickly rolled out of the way. She chased after him, firing several punches and kicks which Naruto had trouble blocking. The blonde was knocked away by an especially strong punch that pushed him into a tree. He had no idea Hinata was this strong or this good at taijutsu. He put his hands in his favorite seal and called out his jutsu.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

A hundred Naruto's popped into the clearing, all surrounding the heiress. She knew she could probably defeat them all with jyuuken strikes, but that would take too much effort. She looked at all the Naruto's, each was wearing a confident smirk. If it weren't for the fact that she was fighting right now, Hinata would be in heaven. She suppressed her urges for now and concentrated on the fight.

One lone Naruto walked out, he pointed at Hinata. "Lets see how strong that jutsu really is Hinata! Can you stop all of us?"

She was glad he had given her time to prepare the jutsu. As destructive at it was it still took a few seconds to redirect her chakra to her hands and form it. She fanned out her arms to both sides of her body and started moving them rapidly. At this point all Naruto's charged at her, brandishing their fists. During the fight with the other insect clan from Iwa Hinata had only used this jutsu to mainly shield herself from smaller enemies. Now she would have to use it to protect against larger targets, targets that could think for themselves and did not need direction. Naruto really was helping her better her jutsu.

"Shugo Hakke Rokujuu Yon Shou!"

Naruto's shadow clones started disappearing at an incredibly fast rate. From all sides they dispelled, Hinata's jutsu really did protect her everywhere. They last five clones jumped in and were sent into oblivion, but Naruto was nowhere to be seen. The ground cracked beneath her feet but she did not have enough time to react before the real Naruto sent her into the air with an uppercut.

Hinata back flipped and landed on the ground. She was breathing hard and so was her opponent. They each had a smile on their face. Naruto was thinking they should spar more often, he was having a lot of fun. Hinata was thinking along the same lines. She'd never really had fun while sparring with Kiba or Shino, but Naruto seemed to make everything interesting. Hinata decided to take it up a notch.

"Byakugan!" She smirked at Naruto's reaction. He had said no holding back.

Naruto's surprised look quickly faded in favor of an equally confident smirk. He put his hands in the ram seal and drew on as much chakra as he could without tapping into the fox's chakra. That would be going too far.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Twice as many Naruto's popped into the clearing as before. They each took out a kunai, which Hinata took as her cue. She started moving her hands to get her jutsu started again. All of the bushin jumped up and hurled kunai at Hinata. Her shield deflected them and even sent a good portion going in other directions, dispersing many of the clones. Only ten clones stood in the area, Hinata could see their chakra coils but could not tell which one was the real Naruto. He had distributed chakra among them evenly.

Five ran in and attacked, the first one threw a punch that Hinata dodged and then used a jyuuken strike to the chest to dispel it. She wasn't going for any vital areas; one of these could be the real Naruto. Another tried to tackle her but she moved out of the way quickly, it barreled into another clone and they both dispersed. She focused her attention on the two clones remaining. The female Hyuuga charged at one clone, hitting it in the stomach and dispersing it. With her byakugan she saw the other and brought her legs up to try for a backwards roundhouse kick, but the clone was too close and her foot impacted early.

The clone screamed in agony and fell into a fetal position. Hinata's foot had come into contact with the clone's testicles, and now it was lying on the ground. She thought for a moment that it wasn't a clone the way it didn't disperse as soon as it was hit, but it soon disappeared in a puff of smoke. Hinata was too distracted from the mental image she received from her foot of how Naruto's jewels felt to notice the other five clones coming up behind her

"Uz" the first said, sending a leg into her back.

"-Zu" the second sent her into the air, foot in her side.

"-Ma" the third landed a kick to her ribs, momentarily stunning her.

"-Ki" A fourth said as it sent her even higher.

"Naruto Rendan!" The final yelled after the other four dispersed. It brought its leg up, aiming for a brutal ax kick. Hinata caught the kick just in time, without her byakugan she would've missed it. She sent a savage kick into its gut, hoping it was the real Naruto. The Naruto who received the kick was destroyed, smoke being its only remains. Another Naruto rose up behind her and kicked her in the back, sending Hinata towards the ground quite quickly. She looked back up to see that Naruto disperse as well. The collision with the ground never came though. A strong pair of arms caught her before the ground could. She looked up to see Naruto breathing hard, but he was grinning the widest she had ever seen him grin.

"Hinata that was amazing! You're amazing! That was the best sparring I've had since Sasuke!"

Since the heiress couldn't hide her face she closed her eyes. "T-Thank you N-Naruto-kun," she whispered.

He grinned wider. "Hinata you didn't stutter! Yatta! Does this mean you'll stop acting weird around me?"

Hinata managed a slight nod. He still didn't know why she acted so strange around him. She wanted to tell him her feelings but she was too shy. If he would just ask her out on a date or something, that would probably give her the courage to act on her feelings. He shifted her in his arms.

"Did you hear me, Hinata?"

Her eyes widened. She'd been too drawn into her own thoughts. She shook her head. "G-Gomen Naruto-kun. I-I was thinking about s-something else."

Naruto donned a lopsided smile. "I said thank you. I've never had that much fun sparring Hinata. I wasn't even sure that you would say yes to coming today after what happened on the mission." He paused. The heiress could feel his chest expand as he took a deep breath. "I-I was wondering...well since you seem so nice and all...and you're really pretty-" Hinata face flamed. Naruto was scratching the back of his head.

_'Naruto-kun thinks I'm pretty? He isn't about to...He wouldn't.'_

"Do you wanna go out sometime?" Naruto asked with pinked cheeks.

Naruto chanced a look at the girl. Her mouthed was opening and closing repeatedly, almost like a fish out of water. Her face was so red that he couldn't tell if the blood that dripped from her mouth earlier was still there at all. He could feel the trembles from her hands moving along his arms.

"I-It's okay i-if you don't want to." He explained hurriedly, hoping to salvage their friendship. I-I've been shut down by Sakura-chan a couple times already so it's nothing big." Naruto continued, the hurt in his voice hardly concealed.

_'Answer him! Tell him yes! Anything! Move Hinata! This is your only chance! Move!'_

Hinata lunged and wrapped her arms around his neck. The impromptu hug shocked the blond. "I-I-I'd l-l-love t-t-to g-go o-out w-with y-you Naruto-kun." She forced out.

The blond beamed. "You will! Yatta! I'll pick you up at eight tomorrow Hinata, believe it!"

Hinata smiled from her position behind his head. "A-Arigatou N-Naruto-kun." Those were her last words before she went limp.

Naruto's sigh soon turned into a chuckle. He supposed the weird behavior wouldn't stop instantaneously. The blond walked over to a tree in the clearing and placed Hinata next to it. He sat down next to her and watched the sun set. It was a beautiful moment. It was unfortunate the girl had to be asleep for it. Even with that factor, he was still excited. A girl had finally agreed to go out with him! Turning to his left, he had to tell himself that she wasn't just any girl.

Naruto leaned his back on the tree. Hinata's head fell on his shoulder. She would probably dress up in something nice tomorrow, so he'd have to buy clothes. He chose not to worry about it. For now he would just lean his head to the left to rest on hers and enjoy the moment.

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